Youth Art Month is the month of March! To celebrate, Johnson’s annual art show is the entire month of March. Closing night is from 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM on Friday, March 28th. Please plan to come see your child’s art, take it down, and take it home with you on closing night. If you are unable to attend closing night, your child will receive their artwork during art class on a later date.
Be sure to view your child’s art when you come for Parent Teacher conferences.
Kid art is like an ICEBERG
Remember when it comes to child art, there’s always so much more than you can see.
What You May See:
(Surface level observations)
• Murky Painting
• Scribbles
• Hurried Coloring
• Incomplete Compositions
• Too much Adhesive
• Random Items Glued Together
What You Don’t See:
(Below the surface/the thinking)
• The Ideas
• The Editing
• The Persistence
• The Problem-Solving
• The Trial & Error
• The Frustrations
• The Joy& Excitement
• The Growth
• The Connection to Life Experiences & Memories
• And so much more
As adults, we tend to value the skills we can observe and measure. We like traditional art projects because we CAN SEE success in the application of skills and the use of the elements and principles.
Remember an adult’s aesthetic is different from a child’s.
Remember that although we can’t always see the evidence, when a child is engaged in child-led art making, there is an ABUNDANCE of thinking processes activated in their brain, hidden from view.
So, when looking at kid art remember to reserve judgement at what you SEE and become curious about what you DON’T SEE. What led the child to create this work? What ideas are present? What skills & knowledge did they apply? What problems did they create & solve?
How to talk to your kids about their art:
Instead of saying phases such as: “I like it.” “It looks great.” Try to ask more questions:
• “Will you tell me about your work?”
• “What did you title your work?”
• “What do you want me to know about this?”
• “What surprised you when making this?”
• “Was anything challenging or difficult?”
• “What would you do differently next time?”
Thank you for supporting your child’s creativity!